[canucklad]

Great article……i think i will pop by Aldi’s on the way home and purchase so said ingredients for tonight’s dinner

VK….when is gull egg season?

[BigDog.]

..and whilst the vast majority of us enjoyed the Olympics and Paralympics VK was busily participating here….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSqkdcT25ss

… so now we know he’s called Nigel – who would have thought.

[dutchyankee]

Big Dog you have just become one of my favorite people! Fantastic link! I will always refer to VK from now on as Nigel!

[AdrianHenryAsia]

Getting back to the topic and in reference to some of the earlier posts …..

The visit hasn’t been paid for by Singapore but has infact been funded by UK tax payers.

Their requirement to have a private jet is down to the 9 day schedule and locations they are visiting (Singapore, Borneo, Tuvalu, the Solomon Islands and Malaysia) which using commercial airlines would be almost impossible.

[dutchyankee]

@Loyal_BA, If the trip is in fact being paid for by UK tax payers, I could fully understand why UK citizens would be surprised by the Royal couple flying on anything other than a UK airline or RAF transport. Would it be down to lack of spare aircraft that a UK airline could assign to the duty because of duration and destination?

[canucklad]

As I mentioned in another thread….it’s good form to recognise where possible local companies etc

The simple answer might just be that one or both of them have never flown the 380 before and wanted a shot

[VintageKrug]

Royal travel is rarely determined by the personal wishes of the individual; it’s all part of government procurement.

[VintageKrug]

Gull’s Egg season is in May. Boisdale does a nice omelette.

[MartynSinclair]

A 321, parked next to Airforce One, indeed…………….

An A380, partly made by UKPlc, is far more appropriate and with one part of the upper deck seats being sold to the press, will make the flights cost effective. A back up aircraft is always needed.

Certainly put UKPlc on the map.

[VintageKrug]

I do rather think we have “been on the map” for some centuries; you’ll be aware much of the planet was pink at some stage.

Of course it would be lovely to have an A380, but we are a country a tenth of the size of the US, and a more economical transport would be more appropriate. Were the A320’s wings made here too?

However, any politician who procured two (you need one for backup) would be pilloried, and it would be an easy thing to cut if some sort of sacrifice was needed.

I’d imagine that upgrading the Royal Flight beyond its current modest capability would probably actually save money and complexity over having to charter aircraft; but even if it did it would never fly politically.

In the meantime, I really don’t see a problem with them flying commercially where possible, as long as it’s in F, and would particularly support them using the airlines of any Commonwealth countries which they are visiting; a tremendous honour for Singapore Airlines and an opportunity which I’m sure they’ll all be pleased about as a nation.

[Binman62]

I do not know who they flew with but can only hope it was one way…..

How having a dedicated aircraft or fleet could possible be cheaper than charter flights, particularly when the press do frequently pay for seats on tha same flight, is beyond me.

But then as I recently discovered term time at Eton College are called halves and the are 3 in a year! …to me that explains a lot about Osborne and Cameron’s economic policy. ….Now they really are Twits of the year.

Edited for the pedant……. iPad spell checker

[VintageKrug]

“Binman62 – 12/09/2012 17:35 GMT

But then as I recently discovered term time at Eaton College…”

…but at least they can spell Eton correctly.

—

I’m not certain it would be less expensive.

But you have to remember such a fleet would not just be used for Royal family flights; Ministers who otherwise have to charter aircraft would also be able to use them, and just as Britannia was capable of being used as a hospital ship, so the aircraft could be used for medical and troop transport purposes with a quick-change interior.

Space on Ministerial and Royal flights could also be sold to journalists in the same way, and I’d imagine there would also be considerably reduced risk in terms of security and safety.

[millionsofmiles]

@ VK
“I do rather think we have “been on the map” for some centuries; you’ll be aware much of the planet was pink at some stage.”

Yes VK, these glorious days, long gone by…..and the mourning about the “lost empire”….ts ts ts
The usual hoi polloi uses 319 PJs or 340 PJs…so why shouldn’t HRH The Queen of England (originally German House of Hanover) , why should she NOT have an A380 and one for spare?

[VintageKrug]

The Queen is referred to as Her Majesty, never HRH.

Hardly “mourning”. I think the UK is very certain and confident about her place in the world; this summer especially showed that.

Neither this country nor the Royal Family are ones for showy excess; if you’ve ever boarded Britannia you’d see how modest, in a very lovely way, she was.

Any Royal Flight aircraft should reflect that.

I do think, with an ageing Monarch and Consort, it’s the least we could do to honour her service to the country.

[millionsofmiles]

At least the UK was clever enough not to become a full EU member. And, better even, not even think about adopting the Euro.

The EU is just another way of making Germany pay war penalties.

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